News
Contact: Emily Telford
etelford@cfmt.org
615-321-4939
September 24, 2009
The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee Honors R. Clayton McWhorter with 16th Annual Kraft Humanitarian Award
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee’s annual Joe Kraft Humanitarian Award will be presented to R. Clayton McWhorter on November 5, 2009, for his visionary leadership and dedication to the well-being of Middle Tennesseans.
McWhorter will be honored during the Joe Kraft Humanitarian Award Luncheon at 11:30 a.m., November 5, at the Hilton Hotel in downtown Nashville. Tickets are $70 per person, or tables can be purchased for $700. Reservations for the event can be made online at The Community Foundation’s Web site, at www.cfmt.org or by calling 615-321-4939.
The Joe Kraft Humanitarian Award was created to perpetuate the memory of a remarkable person who contributed to the Middle Tennessee community with strength of character and unwavering integrity. Joe Kraft was devoted to making the lives of others better through hard work, bold dedication to service and strong faith in the human spirit. Annually, The Community Foundation recognizes local leaders who share Kraft’s same philanthropic passion with the Kraft Humanitarian Award.
This year’s honoree, R. Clayton McWhorter, serves as chairman of Clayton Associates, LLC, which was founded to provide venture capital to start-up companies. He participated in the formation of HealthTrust, Inc., and served as chairman, president, and chief executive officer until the HealthTrust merger with Columbia/HCA in 1995. Prior to HealthTrust, McWhorter served as president and chief operating officer for HCA. In 1996, McWhorter created LifeTrust America, an assisted living and senior services company, and served as its chairman until its sale in 2004.
McWhorter serves as chairman of PharmMD. He also serves on the board of trustees for Belmont University. He joined with Belmont in the formation of the Peer Learning Network and funded the University’s Center for Entrepreneurship. McWhorter is a member of Samford University’s advisory board of the McWhorter School of Pharmacy, and is a member of the board of overseers for Samford University, having served as its inaugural chairman. McWhorter continues to serve as a trustee for the Boy Scouts of America, Middle Tennessee Council. McWhorter was a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives; former president and chairman of the Federation American Health Systems; and former member of the board of trustees of the American Hospital Association.
Because of Clayton’s tireless commitment to an educated, healthy and successful Middle Tennessee, The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee is honored to name him the 16th Annual Joe Kraft Humanitarian Award recipient.
About Joe Kraft
Joe Kraft, whose parents were Russian immigrants, was a Davidson County native and graduate of Vanderbilt University. Prior to receiving his degree, Kraft put his athletic scholarship on hold to enlist in the Army Air Corps after the attack on Pearl Harbor. During the war, Kraft flew 31 missions over Italy, Germany and Czechoslovakia as a navigator on a B-17 bomber. He graduated from Vanderbilt in 1948, and received a law degree from what is now Nashville School of Law in 1958. Kraft then founded one of Nashville’s largest certified public accounting firms, Kraft Bros., Esstman, Patton & Harrell.
About The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee
The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee oversees more than 700 charitable funds. In the past eighteen years, The Community Foundation has distributed $438 million to community programs and institutions. It is located at 3833 Cleghorn Avenue, #400, Nashville, Tennessee 37215. For more information, call 615-321-4939 or visit www.cfmt.org.
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